


The Trouble With Royalty

by MaliceManaged



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M, Misunderstandings, Sass, Sexual Content, Slave Trade, Tumblr Prompt, Tumblr: imagine-loki
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-05
Updated: 2016-09-05
Packaged: 2018-08-13 00:06:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7954357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaliceManaged/pseuds/MaliceManaged
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What do you do when you accidentally buy a former prince? Judith <em>really</em> wished she knew...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by this prompt: Imagine accidentally buying Loki from slave auction and being stuck with the annoying, disobeying former prince of Asgard. 
> 
> I'm having entirely too much fun here...

    She wasn’t sure how she got herself into these situations. Whether she was possessed of extraordinarily bad luck, or if the cosmos woke up one day and decided ‘fuck this person in particular’. As she stood there being glared down by her new disgraced-prince-turned-slave, Judith wasn’t sure which was worse.

 

    It all started when she stumbled into a portal on her way home from school. Quite literally; she had been walking, tripped on an uneven bit of pavement, and landed in the middle of a crowded marketplace that was _clearly_ not on Earth. Any awe she might have felt at the sights around her was overshadowed by a) the fact that she didn’t know where she was, b) that she was terribly underdressed in her green peasant blouse, black denim shorts and black pixie boots, and c) _she didn’t know where she was!_

 

    As she walked around running stressed freckled hands through her slightly wind-swept mane of red hair, trying to ignore the looks people were giving her, she bumped into what felt like a wall. She looked up from her new position on her butt on the floor to see a really quite _large_ , blond bearded man glaring down at her, though his expression softened a bit when he took in the utterly _lost_ look on her face.

 

    “Lost are we, little girl?” He asked as he offered her a hand up, “I could help you, for the right price.”

 

    Judith bit back a retort about her nineteen-year-old self _not_ being a little girl and let him help her up. “I’ll have to pass; doubt any money I have would be any good here.”

 

    The man laughed loudly, earning a few stares from passersby. “Nonsense! All money is good here,” He assured, gesturing around them, “There’s all sorts here, from many realms.”

 

    “Oh. Well...” Judith rummaged through her bag for a moment then pulled out a dollar coin she’d been trying to get rid of for weeks and held it out to him, “What does this get me?”

 

    The man took the coin and examined it a moment before pocketing it and smiling at her in a way she decided she didn’t quite like. “That gets you all the help you’ll ever need,” He replied and pulled out a roll of parchment from a pocket, handing it to her, “Take this to the man inside, you’ll know him when you see him; he’ll give you your purchase.”

 

    Judith looked at the paper in her hand confusedly then the man nudged her into the building behind him. Inside was full of more people, all shouting at each other to be heard over the general din, and what looked like a stage in one corner, though it was currently empty. She looked around a bit then spotted a brown haired man dressed like the man outside and made her way over to him, firmly ignoring the leers and catcalls thrown her way. She handed the paper over and the man read it before grinning quite maliciously and walking into a side room.

 

    He came back out a little while later followed by another man, tall and pale with black hair and the greenest eyes she’d ever seen that put her own to shame. She had a moment to note that he didn’t look particularly happy before the brown haired man pushed a length of chain into her hands that she belatedly noticed was attached to the cuffs on the black haired man’s wrists. “Your purchase, my lady,” He told her questioning look.

 

    “What?!” Judith blurted, earning a few looks.

 

    The man laughed at her expression, handed her another parchment then walked away, calling her something in a language she didn’t understand. She got the distinct feeling she just got called a tourist, though. She looked at the paper and found it was a proof of purchase, along with what was likely the man’s name and origins: Loki... _something_. The ink was smudged there. Asgard...

 

    Oh. He was a prince. Wonderful.

 

    Judith looked up to Loki to find what could only be called a murderous glare staring back at her, and she took a tiny cautious step back from him, eyeing him warily. She looked around for the brown haired man to no avail then decided maybe she could straighten this out with the blond outside. Judith took a step towards the door before stopping abruptly and looking back at a scowling Loki, wondering if she should let go of the chain or if he would just follow her. In response Loki took a grudging step forward, making the choice for her, and she turned around and began making her way to the door; once again ignoring the leers.

 

    Loki blinked at the sudden light assaulting his eyes after being so long out of it. When he adjusted, he looked at Judith, who was clearly looking for something, and rolled his eyes. “You won’t be able to get rid of me that easily,” He said, gaining her attention, “Purchases are quite final around here.”

 

    “Well, I don’t want a slave! That’s not even legal where I come from!!” Judith exclaimed, clearly distressed.

 

    “You should have thought of that _before_ buying things from strangers,” Loki retorted mockingly.

 

    Judith thought to reply but thought better of it and simply began to walk through the marketplace. She just had to get back home and then she could send him on his way and be done with it; after all, just because she bought him, didn’t mean she had to keep him. Before long she was more hopelessly lost that she’d already been and on the verge of tears. She found a more secluded spot among some trees and plopped ungracefully down onto the floor; the length of the chain meant that she accidentally yanked Loki down with her, and he hissed what was likely an expletive before grudgingly sitting down next to her.

 

    “Why do these things have to happen to me?” Judith complained aloud to no one in particular, “I just wanted to get home and ignore all my homework until the last possible moment like a _normal_ person, not...” She glared at the chain in her hand, _“This!”_

 

    Loki scoffed derisively. “You think _you’ve_ got problems...”

 

    “This isn’t a competition!” Judith exclaimed, throwing her hands up and accidentally swinging the chain into the air; it hit him square in the face, earning her another colourful expression she couldn’t understand. She considered apologising but decided his attitude didn’t really deserve it. “I just wanna go home,” She added with a pout.

 

    “At least you _have_ a home,” Loki snapped, rubbing the spot on his cheek where the chain had connected to soothe the sting.

 

    “How’d you even end up here, anyway?” Judith asked, choosing to ignore his tone.

 

    “I crossed a line too many,” Loki replied vaguely.

 

    “Why’re you whining to _me_ , then? It’s your own damn fault. All _I_ did to get stuck in this mess was trip!”

 

    And just like that, the murderous glare returned with a vengeance.


	2. Chapter 2

    It turned out that getting back to Earth was as easy as chatting with an elven merchant and trading him a charm bracelet he seemed quite fascinated by for a spell. There had been a moment’s reluctance, as the bracelet was one Judith had saved up for three months to buy, but in the end she decided she could always save up for another once she was home. She was infinitely grateful the spell took them straight to her apartment; she was not looking forward to the kind of attention she’d attract walking down the street with a shackled dude behind her.

 

    Loki looked around distastefully before turning to her. “ _This_ is where you _live?”_

 

    “Welcome to the life of a college student,” Judith replied sarcastically, “Lucky I can even afford this place at all.”

 

    “And yet you could afford to buy a slave,” Loki retorted accusingly.

 

    “Dude; you literally cost me a dollar,” Judith deadpanned and watched with morbid fascination as his face fell.

 

    Was it cruel? Absolutely. Was she sorry? Not in the slightest. If he were being less of a jerk she would have been, but alas...

 

    In any case, her words had the intended effect of shutting him up. She turned to walk to her bedroom then remembered the chain in her hands and turned back around and stepped closer to him. Tugging slightly on the chain so Loki would lift his wrists closer to her eye level, she examined the shackles, wondering how she was supposed to unlock them. They didn’t give her a key, after all. Loki considered telling her, but he was still miffed about how much she’d actually paid for him and decided to let her figure it out for herself. After a minute, Judith found a slight indentation in the space between the cuffs and curiously pressed on it; the chain dropped to the floor with a rather loud clatter then the shackles separated into individual cuffs.

 

    “It seems you _do_ possess some intelligence after all,” Loki mocked in a deceptively light tone.

 

    Judith rolled her eyes then turned and walked away into her room. When she turned to shut the door so she could change she bumped into Loki, who had followed her in. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?” She asked in surprise.

 

    “You didn’t tell me not to follow you, oh, Mistress mine,” Loki remarked snidely. If it had been anyone else, he might have thought twice about showing such blatant disrespect, but he simply didn’t consider her a threat. The girl was clearly in over her head and he decided that, as long as he was stuck there, he might as well have some fun.

 

    Judith glared at him, knowing he was messing with her. “Get out!” She snapped, putting her hand on his chest and pushing him back, quite ineffectively.

 

    Loki smirked, thoroughly amused by her useless attempts to move him; she’d gotten lucky at the marketplace, as he hadn’t been expecting her to sit so suddenly. No such luck now. He leaned down closer to her eye level. “Make me,” He challenged.

 

    Judith stared at him for a moment then a smile slowly spread on her lips. She reached into a pocket of her bag, still slung over her shoulders, brought out a can of mace and sprayed it right in his eyes.

 

    When Judith returned from class the next day Loki was _still_ sulking. She ignored him in favour of showering and getting something to eat before getting started on her homework. Halfway through her researching, she looked up to see him glaring at her again and she rolled her eyes.

 

    “Oh, get over it already; you started it,” She snapped.

 

    “If I didn’t have these shackles...” Loki began lowly.

 

    “If you didn’t have those shackles, you wouldn’t be here, which would be a plus for everyone,” Judith retorted irritably.

 

    There was a flash of what she could have sworn was hurt in his expression, but it was gone so fast she figured she’d imagined it. Loki aimed a swift kick at the coffee table, where she was working, and knocked over her glass of soda; he smiled spitefully as she swore loudly and tried to save whatever papers weren’t soaked. Judith suddenly grabbed the glass and threw it at him, and he just barely managed to dodge. As it shattered to pieces against the wall, he looked back at her in slight shock.

 

    Judith grabbed what papers she could save and stormed towards her room. “You’re cleaning that mess up!” She yelled along the way, slamming the door shut behind her.

 

****

 

    A week later things hadn’t improved. It seemed that Loki was doing his absolute best to get on Judith’s nerves, and was completely successful. At some point she wondered if he was actually trying to drive her insane. For her part, she certainly didn’t take it quietly, and they ended up in more arguments and yelling matches than she had ever been involved in in her entire life.

 

    She asked him to clean the dishes, not particularly wanting to do it but being too hungry to put off dinner for much longer, and he flat out refused. “For goodness sake; it’s one thing! You can’t do this _one thing?”_ She said exasperatedly.

 

    “Why should I?” Loki asked back from the couch, where he was quite comfortably lounging.

 

    “Because I told you to!” Judith snapped as she lost her patience.

 

    “This coming from the woman who ‘didn’t want a slave’,” Loki retorted, sounding bored.

 

    “Hey, I can barely afford to feed _myself_ half the time; if you wanna eat, you gotta start earning your keep,” Judith argued. Loki didn’t budge. She threw her hands up in frustration. “Fine! Starve, then! See if I care!” She yelled then stormed to her room and slammed the door shut.

 

    Loki smirked, counting another victory in his mission to make Judith’s life miserable. Maybe it was petty, but it wasn’t as though he had anything else to do, and as far as he was concerned it was her fault he was stuck there. A while later Judith came out of her room, went into the kitchen for a few minutes, and then walked right past the living room and out the front door without so much as a glance in his direction.

 

    An hour later, Loki grew hungry and got up and went to the kitchen to remedy that; because damned if he was going to let a mortal tell him he wasn’t allowed to eat just because he didn’t feel like working for it. He may have been cast out of Asgard, but he was still a prince, whatever Odin said.

 

    And that was when he realised that Judith had taken the last of the food with her.


	3. Chapter 3

    He was _not_ admitting defeat; he was choosing his battles.

 

    Yes, that was it.

 

    “That doesn’t go there,” Judith lazily said from her spot, chair leaning back and feet on the table, slowly making her way through a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Red Velvet Cake as she watched him put the dishes away.

 

    Loki took a deep, steadying breath, reminding himself what was at stake. “Where, then?” He asked through half gritted teeth.

 

    “I’m sorry; what was that?” Judith asked with feigned ignorance.

 

    “Where, then, _Mistress,”_ Loki practically growled. He deeply regretted ever calling her that; he doubted she would be insisting upon it now if he hadn’t.

 

    “Top left,” Judith replied absently, going back to her ice-cream.

 

    When the last plate was put away in its proper place, Loki turned to Judith, glaring at her. “Anything else?” He asked shortly. Judith raised an eyebrow. _“Mistress,”_ Loki spat out.

 

    Judith smiled an _extremely_ satisfied smile, and Loki dearly wished she wasn’t so damn beautiful so he could hate her more. She made a show of thinking about it, languidly cleaning her spoon before pointing it at the other chair, where the food she’d brought back sat. “Not right now, no; you can eat now,” She replied grandly.

 

    Loki sat and grumbled a ‘thank you’ at her urging before beginning to eat.

 

    He was _not_ admitting defeat.

 

****

 

    “I need an opinion,” Judith declared as she walked into the living room.

 

    “Yes,” Loki replied without looking up from her phone, which he had... _borrowed_ while she was in the shower.

 

    “You don’t even know what I’m gonna ask!”

 

    “Which should tell you how much I care.”

 

    Loki had been there for six months now, and they had reached a sort of truce. He was still an ass and did just about everything he could think of to get out of actually doing what she asked, but he knew now when she was nearing breaking point and didn’t push her past it much. Judith had mostly gotten used to his sass and sarcasm, and only occasionally had to threaten to withhold food to get him to behave.

 

    She rolled her eyes and walked over to the couch, snatching her phone back. “How do I look?” She asked, taking a step back and holding her arms out a bit.

 

    Loki stared at her, forgetting how to breathe for a moment. She was wearing a black dress with cap sleeves and a sweetheart neckline, the tight-fitting bodice flaring out at the hips and flowing down loosely to just above her knees, and a pair of strappy black heels. Her hair was parted at the side and flowing loosely down her back and she was wearing makeup, which was a rarity; smoky tones brought out the green of her eyes and a deep red on her plump lips that he stared at for probably too long.

 

    Judith smirked and leaned forward to place a finger under his chin and push up, which was when he realised he was gaping at her slightly. “That’s all I needed to know,” She said somewhat coyly before stepping back.

 

    She was halfway to the door when Loki found his voice again. “Where are you going?” He asked. And if he sounded a bit more demanding than he intended, well...

 

    “Out,” Judith replied flippantly. She opened the door and looked over her shoulder. “Don’t wait up,” She said with a flirtatious wink then was gone.

 

    Oh, how he hated her sometimes.

 

    Hours later, Loki was in Judith’s room playing Skyrim on her computer when she stumbled in with her heels in her hands. He cursed how immersed he’d been in the game that he hadn’t heard her come in as he swivelled the chair around to face her then noticed she looked very upset and was swaying slightly as she tossed her shoes aside.

 

    “I take it your plans didn’t quite work out?” He said, feigning disinterest and pretending he wasn’t a _tiny bit_ concerned.

 

    She looked at him intently for a full thirty seconds then made her way over purposefully and dropped herself onto his lap; before he could fully register what had happened, she tangled her fingers in his hair and crashed her lips upon his. He hesitated for maybe three seconds before responding, kissing her back just as hungrily. Somewhere along the line his hands made their way up her skirt and to her ass; the moan she let out when he pressed her down on his growing arousal was enough to get him out of the chair and onto her bed, tugging down the zipper of her dress none-too-patiently.

 

    He pulled back from her enough to tug her dress down when she suddenly pushed him away and got out of bed, running out of the room; before long he heard the unmistakable sounds of her throwing up in the bathroom and collapsed back onto the bed with a frustrated groan.

 

    The next morning Judith was infinitely glad she never seemed to get hungover. She was not, however, looking forward to facing Loki after what had happened. Sure, she teased him a _lot_ after he’d unintentionally let her know he was attracted to her, but that’s as far as she’d ever gone. She wasn’t even sure what possessed her to kiss him in the first place; the attraction was mutual but she simply wasn’t the type for casual sex. And casual is all it would’ve been if they’d gone that far. She wasn’t going to delude herself into thinking he felt anything but the barest tolerance for her.

 

    Reluctantly she got out of bed, showered, and made her way to the kitchen where breakfast, and Loki, was waiting for her. That was one of her rules; he had to make breakfast every morning, and occasionally dinner. When she was pissed at him she’d make him wait until she was finished eating before he could eat himself, because there was nothing he hated more than to be reminded that he was technically her slave and that drove it home better than anything.

 

    An awkward silence hung in the air as they ate and Judith stayed at the table after the food was gone and Loki was taking care of the dishes. When he turned to find her still there after he’d finished he rolled his eyes. “Norns; if I’d known you were going to make such a big deal of it, I would’ve shoved you off my lap,” He said somewhat mockingly.

 

    “It’s not a big deal!” She snapped, standing up. Loki’s ears practically burned with the lie. “My date stood me up, I was drunk and you were there. That’s all.” With that she stormed away and stayed in her room for the rest of the day.

 

    Loki would forever deny just how badly the words stung.

 

    He was _not_ admitting defeat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm evil, in case you haven't noticed.


	4. Chapter 4

    Judith was sick.

 

    Judith never got sick.

 

    In the nine months Loki had known her, not once did she get more than the mildest of colds that didn’t last the day.

 

    He was _not_ concerned.

 

    He felt her forehead and grimaced at her temperature. When he pulled his hand back she whined softly, grabbed his wrist, and pulled slightly. He’d forgotten how much cooler than her he naturally was; as she was now, he probably felt like ice. That gave him an idea. Taking his shirt off, he climbed into bed next to her and pulled her to himself, her head tucked under his chin. It was hardly comfortable, frankly he felt like he was on fire, but the relieved sigh she breathed out kept him there for a few hours until she started coughing badly and he got up to get her some medicine.

 

    Judith didn’t remember much about the six days her illness lasted, but she did remember Loki checking in on her. On the seventh day she woke up with a bit of a headache but nothing else and she got out of bed, showered and made her way to the kitchen, finding it empty, which was odd considering how late in the morning it was. She walked into the living room to find Loki completely passed out on the couch. She crouched down and brushed his hair out of his face, to which he didn’t even stir; even asleep he looked positively exhausted, and she smiled slightly and kissed his forehead before standing up and going into the kitchen to make breakfast.

 

    When Judith got home from work Loki discreetly watched her, only to look away and feign disinterest when she turned to greet him, satisfied that she was okay now. She took care of dinner that night, using part of the tips she’d gotten to order pizza. As soon as it arrived, she set it down on the coffee table then plopped down on the couch with the tv remote, practically on top of Loki, who glared at her.

 

    “ _My_ couch; I take as much space as I want,” She said, sticking her tongue out at him.

 

    Loki rolled his eyes and pointedly moved further away from her. Just to annoy him, Judith pulled up her legs to sit criss-crossed on her seat and purposefully set her knee on his leg; he glared at her again, but there was nowhere else to move unless he got up and walked around the couch to sit on the other end. And he wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction.

 

    When the food was gone and the movie they were watching was over, Judith sat up and leaned over to Loki, kissing his cheek. “Thanks for taking care of me,” She said to the startled expression he quickly masked with indifference.

 

    “You say that as though I had a choice,” Loki scoffed.

 

    “You could’ve done just enough to keep me alive,” Judith countered, “You could’ve let me be miserable, but you didn’t. You didn’t have to exhaust yourself so much looking after me that you didn’t even flinch when I touched you this morning, but you did. So, thank you.”

 

    Loki was quiet for a while. He wasn’t sure why he’d done any of that. Well; he knew _why,_ but he was steadfastly ignoring it, so... He _was_ a little disturbed that he’d been so out of it he hadn’t sensed her _that_ close to him, though. He decided to focus on that. That he understood.

 

****

 

    Judith was crying.

 

    She burst in through the front door, not even bothering to lock it behind her which she was almost obsessive over, and rushed to her room, letting out a quiet sniffle along the way. Loki went over to lock and bolt the front door then made his way to her bedroom. He knocked on the door, heard a muffled ‘go away’, and promptly went inside.

 

    “You’re home early,” Loki remarked lightly, a direct contrast to Judith’s pillow-muffled sobbing.

 

    “Fuck off!” Judith managed, the words barely audible from her position.

 

    “Hmm... no,” Loki replied simply. He walked over and flopped onto the bed next to her on his back, turning his head to face the mass of red waves. Judith didn’t feel like arguing with him so she resolved to simply ignore him as she cried until her tears ran out and her head ached. After a while she turned her head to see him still staring at her. “Now will you tell me what happened?” He asked.

 

    “Why do you even care?” She asked back, her voice hoarse from her crying.

 

    “Who says I care?” Loki countered, “Tell me anyway.”

 

    Judith stared at him for a while then huffed. “I got fired from my job ’cause I refused to sleep with my boss,” She said bitterly.

 

    “So find another place of employment,” Loki replied simply, “Preferably one that actually respects you.”

 

    Judith scoffed, turning onto her side facing him. “It’s not that easy,” She said, earning a questioning look, and she sighed, “You have no idea how hard it is to find a job around here that works around my classes. I haven’t spent the last two and a half years working my ass off studying just to slip up on it now, but I need to pay the rent and food and all that.”

 

    “You could always speak with your parents,” Loki reasoned, turning onto his side as well, “They seem to care enough to call practically every day.”

 

    Judith groaned. “I am _not_ that desperate yet,” She replied in distaste, “Anyway, it’s not even about the money that much.” She shuddered slightly. “I can still feel his hand on my ass; I feel violated.”

 

    “Shall I kill him?” Loki suggested nonchalantly. Judith blinked and stared at him for a long moment. “It was only a suggestion,” He added, thinking he’d gone a bit far.

 

    “I’m thinking about it,” Judith finally said, earning a surprised blink.

 

    “Well, think fast; it’s a limited time offer,” Loki said lightly. Judith let out a laugh and he smiled, reaching over to take her chin in his hand. “That’s better,” He said softly.

 

    Judith took his hand in hers, pulling it down from her face, then closed the distance between them and kissed him. Loki inhaled sharply, a heartbeat’s hesitation, before kissing her back unhurriedly. She moved closer, deepening the kiss; she pushed him onto his back, moving on top of him, and his hands came up to rest on her thigh and hip. She ran her hands down his arms before taking hold of his wrists.

 

    Loki felt before he heard the click of the cuffs being released, but when he did his eyes flew open and he pushed Judith off of himself. “No!” He cried out as he scrambled off the bed, but it was too late and the cuffs fell uselessly to the floor.

 

    He watched on in horror as Judith’s confusion turned to surprise as she watched his skin slowly changing into a deep blue colour.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry not sorry


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually really like this chapter; and not just because it was past 12:30 am when I _finally_ finished it.

    _Loki wasn’t paying attention. Not really. He vaguely heard as Odin went on and on, sounding more enraged than he’d ever heard him, and silently wished the old man would be done soon. What was even the point? They both_ knew _he wasn’t going to learn anything from this, aside from maybe new ways to hate his so-called_ father.

_Frigga wasn’t there. Of course she wouldn’t be; she didn’t agree with this and she definitely wouldn’t want to see her youngest_ (and favourite) _son be exiled and abandoned to slavery to who-knows-what manner of creature. Her absence still stung him._

_Thor wasn’t there either, but that was for the best; Loki didn’t want him there to witness this humiliation, especially considering the whole thing was mostly his fault. All because he couldn’t be bothered to listen to his little brother_ (not brother) _. Perhaps if Thor were being punished as well, Loki reasoned; he wouldn’t be so angry. It wasn’t as though Thor ignoring his usually sound advice was anything new. No; his anger was at the fact that they_ both _screwed up but only one of them was being punished for it. But of course he was; he’d always been the royal spare._

No _, he reminded himself,_ Less than that. _A cast-off from two realms, neither ever a good fit._

_Finally, he heard the words ‘remove’ and ‘seidr’ in the same sentence and snapped his attention back to the Allfather, figuring that signalled the end of his once-father-not-father’s tirade. The feeling as his magick was taken from him was horrible; he felt like he was being ripped apart, and though he tried to stand strong, he inevitably fell to his hands and knees with a cry of agony. But that was nothing compared to what followed._

_He watched as the illusion that fed the lie of his origins for so long faded away until there was nothing left of it, and he looked up through tear-filled eyes at Odin, gaze full of hatred for the old man for taking this last thing from him. Odin stepped forward and told him to stand, and Loki did so only reluctantly; he then clasped the cuffs that would bind him to servitude to whomever deigned to pay for the discarded spare on his wrists. As they closed, Loki felt the familiar tingling of magick and looked down at his hands to see his glamour returning to him._

_“One last mercy,” Odin said by way of explanation._

_Loki wanted to scream._

 

****

 

    Judith wasn’t sure what to make of what she was seeing. Loki had told her that he was a jötunn once when she asked him why he was so cold, but he hadn’t deigned to explain to her what that actually _was._

 

    It was _that_ , apparently.

 

    After a while of tension in which Loki looked about ready to flee, Judith broke the silence to ask the most pressing question on her mind. “What the hell just happened?”

 

    Loki took a moment to find his words. “Something that shouldn’t have,” He finally said. “This,” He gestured at himself, “Is me. The cuffs held together an illusion; the glamour that cloaked me for most of my life, made me believe I was an aesir like my so-called _family._ The original was removed along with my seidr. My magick,” He explained before she could ask.

 

    “Oh,” Was all Judith said.

 

    She got up and walked over to him, staring at him for a moment before raising her hand and caressing his cheek. His eyes fluttered shut with a sigh and he leaned into her touch. She tangled her fingers in his hair and tugged him down, pulling his lips to hers. It was a simple kiss, just a gentle pressing of lips; and then he leaned down for another one, and another, until finally he parted them and kissed her properly, earning a smile. They took their time as before; there was no hurry, neither of them were going anywhere.

 

    She took a step back, pulling her with him, towards the bed and he parted from her lips to look her in the eyes. “You’re certain?” He asked seriously.

 

    “No; I’m just practising my CPR,” Judith replied sarcastically.

 

    Before he could retort she pulled him down again and planted her lips firmly upon his own. This time he didn’t pull away as she continued to walk backwards until the backs of her knees hit the bed, instead he picked her up and laid her down on the mattress. Their hands wandered over each other until their shirts and her bra lay discarded on the floor; he moved his lips along her jaw and down her neck to appreciative sighs until he reached one of her breasts, and she arched her back in response.

 

    His hands undid the zipper at the back of her skirt and he pulled it and her panties down her legs at once, peppering her abdomen and belly with kisses and light nips along the way. He crawled his way back up her body, leaving kisses and bites here and there, until he reached her lips again and kissed her deeply. Her hands found their way to his pants, tugging at them quite impatiently, and he chuckled into the kiss before obliging and helping her remove them. He looked her in the eyes once more then slid inside of her, his eyes falling shut and his head falling onto her shoulder with a low groan to accompany her moan.

 

    Giving her a moment to adjust to the welcome intrusion, he began to move, thrusting slowly but deeply, dragging the feeling out leisurely. Her hands found his hips, nails digging into his skin slightly, and urged him on. Gradually, as though afraid to shatter the moment, he began to move faster; her hands ran up his back, gripping his shoulders tightly, and she arched her back, hips moving to meet his thrusts. The world seemed to disappear; it was only their limbs clinging to each other, the fire they coaxed from within, and their hearts seeming to beat in tandem. When they finally came undone, they came together, falling exhausted onto the bed as the last waves of pleasure ebbed.

 

    Once his heartrate returned to normal and his breath no longer came in pants, Loki rolled onto his side and propped his head up on his elbow, gazing down at Judith for a long while, simply drinking her in. “I’m fairly certain I love you,” He said at last.

 

    Judith looked back at him then smirked slightly. “You were definitely worth that dollar, you annoying pain in the ass,” She replied. He looked hurt and she breathed a laugh and leaned up to kiss him, pulling him down with her. “I love you too, you dolt,” She added fondly.


End file.
